5 Tips on How to Be a Rockstar Freelancer

Last year, I wrote about how you can start a successful career as a freelancer. If you have not read that yet and you are interested in becoming a rockstar freelancer, then you should read that one first before reading this post. 🙂

Freelancing allows you to do many things. If you’re an artist, then it is a great way to build an impressive portfolio. If you are skilled in multiple niches, then It helps you narrow them down to the ones you love best doing, then refine and improve your skills in your chosen niche. Freelancing also helps you get your foot in the industry or niche of your choice, and it can help you make a name for yourself as a business owner.

And the best part… It allows you to call the shots – work when you want, where you want, with whoever you want, at the price that you want.

If you are already a freelancer, the next thing you want to know is how to rock it. And today,I have a few quick tips on how you can become a rockstar freelancer.

Always Do Your Research

Research is key. Doing user research so you can understand the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors of the people who are likely to use your product or service will greatly help you serve your clients best. This will help identify their pain points, and enable you to offer them solutions.

You should also research on the tools that are best to use for your niche. Research on what other rockstar freelancers use. Find out what are the best practices. Get to know the best platforms to use to manage your projects. This list goes on, but the operative word is research. Even if you’re already a freelancer, you can never rest on your laurels. You can never say you know everything. There’s always a new tool to use, some new skills to learn, and some new platforms to try. If before there was just Trello and Basecamp and Asana, now there’s AirTable, Mondays and AdminJa. Don’t stop with what you know. Keep abreast of what technology can offer you.

And while I don’t recommend competing for price, it also helps to know what other freelancers are charging. You don’t have to charge what they charge, but if you’re just starting out, it’s good to have an idea of what’s the industry standard.

If you’re struggling to find a client, then maybe the niche is already saturated. Knowing how much competition you have will help you decide whether or not to stick to your chosen niche, or you can find out how you can offer value-added services to your existing package. Again, you can address this by doing research.

Take Your Time

Another tip that doesn’t get mentioned often is the need to take your time.

So you’ve done your research. You’ve found out what’s happening in the industry, found out the best tools and the best platforms.

Next thing you have to do is take time to learn those tools and platforms. Learn them and compare them with what you’re already using. Will it be beneficial to switch? Or are the ones you’re using serving you well?

Take time to build your profile, too. Don’t rush things. Say you are a creative freelancer and you have a huge portfolio. Take time to evaluate your work and select the best ones to include in your website. Better to have just 10 of your best work than have hundreds of mediocre pieces on display.

Taking your time with your tasks is also important. I don’t mean to suggest that you should dilly-dally with your tasks. What I mean is to take time to understand the process and what the desired result is, so that you get it right the first time. Don’t aim for a quick finish. Aim for an efficient one. Delivering an error-free project will score you great points, whatever your freelance skill is. In addition, if you keep getting things done right consistently, you are sure to earn a very positive reputation in the industry and people will be more likely to hire you or refer you to their contacts.

Understand The Client

A rockstar freelancer is also at least one step ahead of the client, and that is possible when you fully understand the client’s goals, their pain points, and their personal preferences.

Here’s the thing… A freelancer is not an employee. A freelancer is, in a way, a business partner of the client. Understanding your client empowers you to be proactive and to take initiatives. This also reduces the number of times you have to ask questions. Say you are a freelancer specializing in travel management. Take the initiative to know your client’s preferences when traveling. Preferred departure times, arrival times, window or aisle seats, coach, business or first class, need wifi connection, passports updated, frequent flyer accounts? Get all these data the first time your client asks you to book them for travel and file them away in a safe place for your easy reference next time.

Making the effort to understand your client on Day 1 will not only make your life easier. It will also allow you to accomplish your tasks with the least back and forth with your client. And aren’t you there to save your client precious time, so they can focus on strategies and not dwell on the mundane? So yes, save your client some time. They will love you for it.

Keep Your Work Consistent 

Consistent work should be more of a set default for you rather than something you are told to do. Consistent work shows you are committed to your work, commitment shows confidence, confidence shows you know what you need to do and that earns you the client’s trust. Consistency in work is good to have, but consistency in quality is a must-have.

If you do a really great job with a client, they then go and tell their tribe. Members of that tribe can become your clients, too.

What happens if you’re not consistent?

You get more clients because you’ve been referred by a happy client, But then you deliver an inferior performance for the new client. Of course, the new client will be unhappy. And guess what? One bad review can cancel out whatever good reviews you’ve had in the past.

Sell Yourself

What does this mean?

As a freelancer, I highly doubt if you’ll ever have a marketing budget. Most freelancers I know don’t even have personal branding. So let’s say you are among those who missed the memo on the importance of branding… what do you do?

You only have your skills and your experience to bring to the table. You have no products to sell. Just yourself. So make sure you package yourself well. Polish your about page on your website. If you don’t have a website, at least have an account on LinkedIn. Be visible on social media, but be very careful on what you post. Be the person that you want your client to be working with. Be the consummate professional.

Being a freelancer can be scary sometimes, but it really isn’t that hard to rock it. Try to practice the quick tips I mentioned above, add in a dash of determination, a pinch of perseverance and whole lot of hard work and you’ll be on the road to rockstardom,

Remember, the word freelancing starts with free. It’s the freedom to do what you love, and being paid while doing it.